"We support the legitimate authority but legitimacy should not deprive us of our legitimate rights..."

Saturday, June 12, 2010

Sorry for resigning: Hatoyama

Yukio Hatoyama resigned as Japanese Prime Minister last week over economic and reform tussle. This is his last e-mail as a premier, hours before stepping down.

"Japan's political history has changed since that scorching summer day of the general election last year. Spurred by the belief that the change of government will definitely change the people's lives for the better, I have since striven as the Prime Minister to this very day to bring about politics in which the people of Japan play the main roles.

We were able to pass budgets that are for the people. I am convinced that our decision to transform Japan into a nation that is supportive of children and promises a bright future, such asthrough the introduction of the child allowance and free education at public senior high schools, was not wrong.

We launched the individual household income support for farming households aimed at rejuvenating primary industries, starting with rice producers. We were also able to increase medical care outlays, if only by a modest amount, in order to prevent the collapse of medical care in the regions. We must redouble our efforts to promote politics that values human life.

These policies, however, have not necessarily registered in the hearts and minds of the Japanese public. It is to my great regret that my lack of virtue was to blame for having lost the ears of the Japanese public.

The issue of Futenma Air Station, where I caused great distress to the people of Okinawa and Tokunoshima, is one of the reasons for this state of affairs. Given the emerging tensions in the region, including the sinking of the ROK Naval patrol vessel by North Korea, it is necessary to seek peace and stability for Japan and East Asia.

I did my utmost to move the base out of Okinawa Prefecture, but I was unable to achieve my objective. I extend my heartfelt apology. However, we did manage to come to an agreement with the United States on eliminating dangers and reducing the burden on Okinawa.

On another note, there was the matter of "politics and money." I left the Liberal Democratic Party with the desire to create a government that did not bear the taint of money. I had neverdreamed that I myself would have been employing a political aide who was in violation of the Political Funds Control Act. I apologize for having caused so much concern.

Make a clean break with the issue of "politics and money" and restore the Democratic Party of Japan's reputation as a clean party; that is what we truly must achieve.

I have so far pressed forward with policies with a view not only to the Japan of today, but also to what Japan should be five, ten, twenty years in the future.

A case in point is local sovereignty. We were able to open the way to creating a Japan where the regions would take center stage, based on the belief that a society that placed the nationalgovernment above the regional governments is wrong. Japan's politics will undergo a fundamental change.

The new concept of public service: this is not yet a familiar term to many. It means opening up services that had been monopolized by the bureaucracy to the "public" in order to create a society where the people truly play the main roles.

The East Asian community. At the Trilateral Summit Meeting with China and the Republic of Korea (ROK) the other day, President Lee Myung-bak, Premier Wen Jiabao, and I had an extended discussion about creating a new era of "We are the one." By opening the nation, we will be able to open up our future; that is my sincere belief.

I would like to express my gratitude to the people of Japan for bringing about the change of government and giving me the opportunity of marching at the forefront of the new politics. Youhave my heartfelt apologies for resigning at the middle of our journey. Notwithstanding, I have no doubts that the policies that I have promoted will continue to be pursued in the future.